Where There’s a Will

Hope, Grief and Endurance in a Cycle Race Across a Continent

By: Emily Chappell

Narrated by: Emily Chappell

A London cycle courier with a taste for adventure, Emily Chappell entered an extraordinary new race - The Transcontinental - in which riders must find their own way, entirely unassisted, across Europe in the shortest time possible. On her second attempt, she won the women's event, covering nearly 4,000 miles in 13 days and 10 hours, sleeping in short bursts wherever exhaustion took her.

In the aftermath of a win that troubled as much as pleased her she worked with Mike Hall, the founder of the race, until his tragic death on the road.

Where There's a Will is a book about a normal person finding the capacity to do something extraordinary; the paradoxes of comradeship, competition, vulnerability and will and the shock of grief, combined in a beautifully written and very human story.

©2019 Emily Chappell (P)2020 Audible, Ltd

10/10

Emily is both a phenomenal athlete and writer. Her time on the road has clearly been full of introspection, and she allows the reader to view the bike through the lens of her world and her world through the lens of a bike.

Inspirational

Beautiful description of a journey through emotional mountain tops and valleys. Truly inspirational and moving.

Very good

It's surprisingly good as it strangely grows on you and like it even more to listen to it a second time.
Sometimes it's a little boring but these parts are very few.
I recommend it to someone that knows this world.
Don't know if other people might like a book like this.

Remarkable book on many dimensions

I thought this was going to be a book about just the Trans-Continental bike race, but it was about so much more than that. It's about Emily's discovery of endurance bike racing, her doubts fears and breakthroughs, her failures (in all their glory) and her successes (mostly downplayed). It also covers her friendship with the endurance cycling legend, Mike Hall, who was tragically killed in a bike race in Australia. For anyone with an ounce of interest in endurance cycling, this is a MUST READ -- it is beautiful, sad, inspiring and amazingly well written.

true grit.

I really enjoyed peeking into the nitty gritty of this endurance sport.I do a little ultra cycling myself and have wondered what's it's like to do these big events. now I know..

Much more than a race report

I never knew about the Trans Continental race, or that Emily Chappell was such a wonderful writer before hearing this book. I was pleasantly surprised. It's a very personal memoir that which will hit home for many cyclists. It comes alive with the author's own voice. You may not even need to be an avid cyclist to get lost in her story.

Great book, even better audiobook

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book, (as well as Emily's previous memoir on working as a bicycle courier, What Goes Around) but listening to it brought so much added depth. Do yourself the favor of doing both as well, I think you will find it well worth the investment of time.

Raw, beautiful, inspiring, and tragic

There is such incredible depth to this story. I listened to it on an all day casual bike ride, and I’m more than half tempted to sign up for a race even though the word race terrifies me. I wish there were more expertly written books by women like this.